Matthewchapter 13
58 verses · Matthew, by tradition · AD 50 to 65 · The Gospels
Key verse
The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side.
It stands in The Sower and the Four Soils, verses 1 to 23.
The chapter
Chapter summary
Discourse 3. Parables of the kingdom. Sower and soils, wheat and tares, mustard seed, leaven, hidden treasure, pearl of great price, the dragnet. The kingdom hidden then revealed. Jesus interprets the sower and the tares privately for the disciples. Rejection at Nazareth: 'a prophet is not without honour, save in his own country.'
Context
Gospel · Matthew · Matthew overview
The world of this chapter
The Galilean ministry · c. AD 29 · A boat pushed out from the shore, with farmland running down to the water · Jewish readers who farmed, fished, baked, and traded for a living
Historical context
Galilean sowing worked in the order the parable describes. The farmer broadcast seed by hand across the whole field and ploughed it in afterwards, so seed genuinely did land on the beaten footpaths that crossed every field, on the thin skin of soil over limestone shelf where roots could not go deep, and among the thorn roots left in the ground from last year.
The weed in the second parable is a specific plant. Darnel looks almost exactly like wheat until the heads form, and its roots tangle with the wheat's, so pulling it early tears up the crop. Sowing it in an enemy's field was a real act of sabotage, serious enough that Roman law addressed it.
The baking picture is bigger than it sounds. Three measures of flour is around forty or fifty pounds, a batch for a village, not a family, and leaven works invisibly through the whole of it.
The last three parables turn on property and trade. Finding valuables buried in a field was common enough in a land repeatedly overrun by armies, and the legal question of who owned such treasure was actively debated, which is why the man buys the field. Pearls were among the most valuable goods in the Roman world, above gold. And the dragnet was the lake's largest net, hauled to shore full of everything, edible and not, to be sorted on the beach.
Significance
Matthew's readers were a small movement being told that if this were really God's kingdom it would look bigger. These parables answer exactly that: it starts like the smallest seed in the garden, it grows quietly like leaven, and the sorting comes at the end, not now.
The rejection at Nazareth that closes the chapter made the same point painfully. If his own town, where they knew his mother and his brothers by name, took offence at him, then a Jewish believer's family trouble was not a sign that he had backed the wrong man.
Where the chapter sits
Matthew 13 falls in Parables of the Kingdom (chapters 13). Discourse 3: hidden then revealed.
Parables of the Kingdom. Sower, wheat and tares, mustard seed, leaven, treasure, pearl, net.
Before it: Mission of the Twelve, chapters 10. After it: Community in the Kingdom, chapters 18.
The whole shape of Matthew→The structure of this chapter
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
A. The Sower and the Four Soils
1. (vv. 1-2)
out of the house: The same day went Jesus out of the house ties this discourse directly to the family scene that closed chapter 12, the same day, and now he teaches from a ship while the multitude stands on the shore, the natural amphitheater of the lake carrying his voice across the water. The bench reads the staging itself as significant: for the first time in Matthew he teaches the crowd only in parables, a shift the disciples notice enough to ask him about it directly a few verses on.
Matthew 13:1
“On that day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. And great crowds gathered around him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. The people couldn't enter Jesus' house or be where the apostles were hearing the mysteries. Therefore, the compassionate and merciful Lord goes out of his house and sits by the sea of this world, so that great crowds gather around him and hear on the beach what they do not deserve to hear inside.”
Jerome· written before 420· Commentary on Matthewpatristic
1 more voice on this verseWhat preachers and commentators have said about this verse, in their own words.
Matthew 13:1
“The sea-side - This was the Sea of Tiberias. The multitude stood on the shore near to him, so that he could be easily heard. He went into a ship - that is, a boat; and sat down to address them. Few spectacles could be more interesting than a vast crowd on the hanks of a smooth and tranquil sea - an emblem of his instructions - and the Son of God addressing them on the great interests of eternity.”
Matthew 13:2
“Into a ship - Το πλοιον, The vessel or boat. Mr. Wakefield supposes (which is very likely) that a particular vessel is uniformly specified, which seems to have been kept on the lake for the use of Christ and his apostles: it probably belonged to some of the fishermen, (see Mat 4:22), who, he thinks, occasionally, at least, followed their former occupation. See Joh 21:3. The thought of pious Quesnel on this verse should not be neglected. We see here a representation of the Church, which consists of the people united to their pastors.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2. (vv. 3-9)
a sower went forth to sow: pictures Palestinian farming where seed was often scattered before plowing, so that the path across the field, the shallow limestone shelf beneath a thin skin of soil, and the roots of uncleared thorns each claimed part of the seed before the plow ever turned it under. The bench reads the parable's climax in the last soil alone, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold, an ordinary yield made extraordinary against three prior failures, the harvest guaranteed despite the loss along the way. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear closes the parable with a call that separates the merely curious crowd from the disciple willing to ask what it means.
Matthew 13:3
“And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, &c.--These parables are SEVEN in number; and it is not a little remarkable that while this is the sacred number, the first FOUR of them were spoken to the mixed multitude, while the remaining THREE were spoken to the Twelve in private--these divisions, four and three, being themselves notable in the symbolical arithmetic of Scripture.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:3
“And it is to be noted, that He spake not all things to them in parables, but many things, for had He spoken all things in parables, the people would have departed without benefit. He mingles things plain with things dark, that by those things which they understand they may be incited to get knowledge of the things they understand not. The multitude also is not of one opinion, but of divers wills in divers matters, whence He speaks to them in many parables, that each according to their several dispositions may receive some portion of His teaching.”
Jerome· written before 420· Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Matthew 13:3
“In parables - The word “parable” is derived from a Greek word signifying “to compare together,” and denotes a similitude taken from a natural object to illustrate a spiritual or moral subject. It is a narrative of some fictitious or real event, in order to illustrate more clearly some truth that the speaker wished to communicate. In early ages it was much used. Pagan writers, as Aesop, often employed it. In the time of Christ it was in common use. The prophets had used it, and Christ employed it often in teaching his disciples.”
Matthew 13:4
“And while he sowed, some seeds fell by the highway side, and the birds came and devoured them - It is observable, that our Lord points out the grand hindrances of our bearing fruit, in the same order as they occur. The first danger is, that the birds will devour the seed. If it escape this, there is then another danger, namely, lest it be scorched, and wither away.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:4
“The place where Christ's hearers now stood represented the characters of most of them, the sand on the sea-shore, which was to the seed like the highway ground. Observe First, What kind of hearers are compared to the highway ground; such as hear the word and understand it not; and it is their own fault that they do not.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Matthew 13:5
“ON another occasion I hope to preach from the words, "because they had no root," but, at this time, my subject is, "They sprang up, because they had no deepness of earth." Every farmer knows the wonderful effect of heat below the soil, how quickly it makes things grow. I do not gather that this was a stony piece of ground, but that it had a mass of stone not far from the surface.”
Charles Spurgeon· written before 1892· The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2844: “The Seed Upon a Rock” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition)Particular Baptist
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:5
“Some fell upon stony places,.... Such a place as the Jews call חולסית, a barren, stony place, a place from whence, they say, they take stones, and בית סלע, and which אינו ראוי לזריעה, "is not fit for sowing" (d); and such were those places and spots of ground, that some of these seeds fell upon; and design such hearers, in whom the natural hardness of their hearts continues, and who remain unbroken by the word, and are without any true sense of sin, and repentance for it.”
Matthew 13:7
“For who would ever have believed me if I had wished to interpret thorns as riches, especially since the former prick while the latter delight? And yet they are thorns, because they tear the mind with the prickings of their thoughts, and when they drag it all the way to sin, they cause it to bleed as if by an inflicted wound. These, in this passage, as another evangelist attests, the Lord calls not simply riches, but deceitful riches, and rightly so.”
Gregory the Dialogist· written before 604· Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 15patristic
Matthew 13:9
“Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. Not externally only, but internally; he that has ears given him to hear, so as to understand, let him make use of them, and seriously consider of, and diligently attend to the use and importance of this parable. It is a way of speaking used by Christ, when anything of moment was delivered, and not so easy to be understood, on purpose to quicken the attention of his auditors, and stir up in them a desire of understanding what was said; which effect this had upon his disciples; see Mar 4:10.”
3. (vv. 10-13)
Why speakest thou unto them in parables?: draws the answer that has troubled readers ever since, because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. The bench reads this not as arbitrary favoritism but as judicial: to those who had already refused the plain teaching of chapters 5 through 12, culminating in the Beelzebub charge, parables now conceal from the unresponsive what they once had opportunity to receive plainly, while still yielding up their meaning to the disciples who ask. Whosoever hath, to him shall be given states the principle in miniature, a settled hearing yields more, a settled refusal loses even what was once offered.
Matthew 13:10
“Christ, in these verses, gives a “reason” why he used this manner of instruction. See also Mar 4:10-12; Luk 8:9-10. Mat 13:11 The mysteries of the kingdom - The word “mystery,” in the Bible, properly means a thing that is “concealed,” or that “has been concealed.” It does not mean that the thing was “incomprehensible,” or even difficult to be understood. The thing might be “plain” enough if revealed, but it means simply that it “had” not been before made known.”
Matthew 13:11
“To you, who have, it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven - The deep things which flesh and blood cannot reveal, pertaining to the inward, present kingdom of heaven. But to them who have not, it is not given - Therefore speak I in parables, that ye may understand, while they do not understand.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:11
“What man, then, of sound mind can possibly suppose that they were ignorant of anything, whom the Lord ordained to be masters (or teachers), keeping them, as He did, inseparable (from Himself) in their attendance, in their discipleship, in their society, to whom, "when they were alone, He used to expound" all things which were obscure, telling them that "to them it was given to know those mysteries," which it was not permitted the people to understand?”
Tertullian· written before 220· The Prescription Against Hereticspatristic
Matthew 13:11
“It is given unto you to know the mysteries, etc. - By mysteries, here, we may understand not only things concerning the scheme of salvation, which had not yet been revealed; but also the prophetic declarations concerning the future state of the Christian Church, expressed in the ensuing parables.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Matthew 13:12
“Whosoever hath, to him shall be given - This is an allusion to a common custom in all countries: he who possesses much or is rich, to such a person, presents are ordinarily given. Whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath - That is, the poor man: he that has little may be easily made a prey of, and so lose his little. This is a proper sense of the word εχειν in sacred and profane writers.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:12
“Whosoever hath - That is, improves what he hath, uses the grace given according to the design of the giver; to him shall be given - More and more, in proportion to that improvement. But whosoever hath not - Improves it not, from him shall be taken even what he hath - Here is the grand rule of God's dealing with the children of men: a rule fixed as the pillars of heaven.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Matthew 13:12
“Two great general principles are conspicuous in the Gospel. The first is that God gives of His Grace to the empty— "He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent away empty." The second principle is that where God has given a measure of Grace He is known to give more—"He gives more Grace." There is no stint with the Lord of Love and no limit to the abundance of Divine Grace which those who come to Him may receive.”
Matthew 13:13
“Therefore speak I to them in parables - On this account, viz. to lead them into a proper knowledge of God. I speak to them in parables, natural representations of spiritual truths, that they may be allured to inquire, and to find out the spirit, which is hidden under the letter; because, seeing the miracles which I have wrought, they see not, i.e. the end for which I have wrought them; and hearing my doctrines, they hear not, so as to profit by what is spoken; neither do they understand, ουδε συνιουσι, they do not lay their hearts to it.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:13
“Note, [1.] There are many that see the gospel light, and hear the gospel sound, but it never reaches their hearts, nor has it any place in them. [2.] It is just with God to take away the light from those who shut their eyes against it; that such as will be ignorant, may be so; and God's dealing thus with them magnifies his distinguishing grace to his disciples.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
4. (vv. 14-15)
fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias: In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias quotes Isaiah 6:9-10 nearly word for word, the same commission that met the prophet at his own calling, hearing without understanding and seeing without perceiving. The bench reads Matthew's use as descriptive rather than merely predictive, the hardened response Isaiah met in his own generation now repeating itself in this one; this people's heart is waxed gross names the condition as self-inflicted dullness, a heart closed against its own healing rather than a healing withheld by decree.
Matthew 13:14
“And in them is fulfilled--rather, "is fulfilling," or "is receiving its fulfilment." the prophecy of Esaias, which saith-- (Isa 6:9, 10 --here quoted according to the Septuagint).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:14
“It is quoted from Isa. vi. The evangelical prophet that spoke most plainly of gospel grace, foretold the contempt of it, and the consequences of that contempt. It is referred to no less than six times in the New Testament, which intimates, that in gospel times spiritual judgments would be most common, which make least noise, but are most dreadful.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Matthew 13:14
“In them is fulfilled - Αναπληρουται, Is Again fulfilled: this proper meaning of the Greek word has been generally overlooked. The evangelist means, that as these words were fulfilled in the Jews, in the time of the Prophet Isaiah, so they are now again fulfilled in these their posterity, who exactly copy their fathers example. These awful words may be again fulfilled in us, if we take not warning by the things which these disobedient people have suffered.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Cross references
Matthew 13:14
- QuotingIsaiah 6:9“And He replied: “Go and tell this people, ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’”
'By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand' (parables rationale; most-quoted OT text in NT)
Matthew 13:15
“Heart is waxed gross - Επαχυνθη, is become fat - inattentive stupid, insensible. They hear heavily with their ears - are half asleep while the salvation of God is preached unto them. Their eyes they have closed - Totally and obstinately resisted the truth of God, and shut their eyes against the light. Lest - they should see, etc. - Lest they should see their lost estate, and be obliged to turn unto God, and seek his salvation. His state is truly deplorable who is sick unto death, and yet is afraid of being cured.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
5. (vv. 16-17)
blessed are your eyes: , for they see turns from the crowd's hardening to the disciples' privilege, and many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see names Abraham, Isaiah, and every servant who longed for the Messiah's day without living to see it. The bench reads this as Matthew's own answer to why the kingdom parables matter at all: what patriarchs and prophets only foresaw by faith, twelve fishermen and a tax collector are watching unfold in front of them.
Matthew 13:16
“Now this Christ speaks of, [1.] As a blessing; " Blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; it is your happiness, and it is a happiness for which you are indebted to the peculiar favour and blessing of God." It is a promised blessing, that in the days of the Messiah the eyes of them that see shall not be dim, Isa. xxxii.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Matthew 13:17
“Many prophets and righteous men - These lived by and died in the faith of the promised Messiah: the fullness of the time was not then come for his manifestation in the flesh. See also on Mat 13:11 (note).”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:17
“In Lu 10:23, 24, where the same saying is repeated on the return of the Seventy--the words, instead of "many prophets and righteous men," are "many prophets and kings"; for several of the Old Testament saints were kings.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
6. (vv. 18-19)
Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower: begins the interpretation Jesus supplies to no other parable in the Gospel at this length, and the way side hearer is the one who does not understand the word of the kingdom at all, so that the wicked one catcheth away what was sown before it can take any hold. The bench notes the seed itself is never blamed; the sower's word is always good, and the parable's whole burden falls on the four conditions of soil that meet it.
Matthew 13:18
Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. That is, the interpretation of the parable; for they had heard the parable before, and had desired an explanation of it; which, though not mentioned by Matthew, is, by the other evangelists, Mar 4:10, Luk 8:9 and since it was given to them to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, therefore Christ calls upon them to attend unto, and hear, so as to understand the spiritual meaning of this parable. Mark relates, that he moreover said to his disciples at this time, "know ye not this parable?"
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:18
“See also Mar 4:13-20; Luk 8:11-15. “Hear ye, therefore, the parable of the sower.” That is, hear the “explanation” or the “spiritual meaning” of the narrative given before. Mark adds Mar 4:13, “Know ye not this parable? And how, then, shall ye know all parables?” By which it seems that the Saviour regarded this as one of the simplest and plainest of the parables, and gave an explanation of it that they might understand the general principles of interpreting others.”
Matthew 13:19
“When any one heareth the word of the kingdom - Viz. the preaching of the Gospel of Christ. And understandeth it not - Μη συνιεντος, perhaps more properly, regardeth it not, does not lay his heart to it. The wicked one - Ο πονηρος, from πονος, labor, toil, he who distresses and torments the soul. Mark, Mar 4:15, calls him ὁ σατανας, the adversary or opposer, because he resists men in all their purposes of amendment, and, to the utmost of his power opposes, in order to frustrate, the influences of Divine grace upon the heart.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:19
“When anyone heareth the word of the kingdom,.... Hence it appears, that by the "seed" in the parable is meant the Gospel, called the "word of the kingdom": because it treats of the king Messiah, of his person, office, and grace; and of his kingdom, and the administration of it by him, under the present dispensation; of the kingdom of grace saints enjoy now, and of the kingdom of heaven they shall enter into hereafter, through the grace and righteousness of Christ.”
7. (vv. 20-21)
with joy receiveth it: The stony ground hearer receives the word with joy and dureth for a while, and the bench reads the failure not in the initial response, which is genuine and glad, but in the shallow root, no depth of earth beneath the emotion to sustain it under tribulation or persecution. Barnes and Henry both note this hearer is the hardest to distinguish from the good ground in the early going, since the outward signs of reception look identical until the sun of testing rises.
Matthew 13:20
“Note, It is possible we may be a great deal better than some others, and yet not be so good as we should be; may go beyond our neighbours, and yet come short of heaven. Now observe, concerning these hearers that are represented by the stony ground, First, How far they went.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Matthew 13:21
“Yet hath he not root in himself - His soul is not deeply convinced of its guilt and depravity; the fallow ground is not properly ploughed up, nor the rock broken. When persecution, etc., ariseth, which he did not expect, he is soon stumbled - seeks some pretext to abandon both the doctrine and followers of Christ.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:21
“Note that which is said, is straightway offended. There is then some difference between him who, by many tribulations and torments, is driven to deny Christ, and him who at the first persecution is offended, and falls away...”
Jerome· written before 420· Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
8. (v. 22)
the care of this world: , and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word in the thorny ground hearer, and the bench pairs the two as opposite dangers meeting in the same effect, anxious want and comfortable plenty both crowding out fruit by occupying the same soil the word needs. The Greek for choke, sumpnigo, is the same verb used of the disciples nearly drowning in the storm at 8:25, a slow strangulation rather than a sudden death, faith crowded out gradually rather than uprooted at once.
Matthew 13:22
“He also that received seed among the thorns - In land ploughed, but not properly cleared and seeded. Is he - represents that person who heareth the word, but the cares, rather the anxiety, η μεριμνα, the whole system of anxious carking cares. Lexicographers derive the word μεριμνα from μεριζειν τον νουν, dividing, or distracting the mind. Thus a poet, Tot me impediunt curae quae meum animum diverse trahunt. “So many cares hinder me which draw my mind different ways.” Terence. The deceitfulness of riches - Which promise peace and pleasure, but can never give them.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
9. (v. 23)
understandeth it: The good ground hearer both receives and understandeth it, and the bench marks understanding as the mark this soil alone carries, the word taking root deep enough to survive the sun and thorn-free enough to bear to maturity. The varied yield, hundredfold, sixty, thirty, is read not as three classes of Christian but as the ordinary variation of fruitfulness among those who genuinely bear it, none excluded from good ground merely for bearing less than another.
Matthew 13:23
“Thirdly, Not all alike fruitful; some a hundred-fold, some sixty, some thirty. Note, Among fruitful Christians, some are more fruitful than others: where there is true grace, yet there are degrees of it; some are of greater attainments in knowledge and holiness than others; all Christ's scholars are not in the same form.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
B. Wheat and Tares Growing Together
1. (vv. 24-26)
sowed good seed in his field: A man which sowed good seed in his field opens the second parable, and while men slept names the opportunity the enemy took, not carelessness on the householder's part but the ordinary hour of night when a field is left unwatched. The tares, likely darnel, are indistinguishable from wheat until the ear forms, so that the servants only see the trouble once the blade has sprung up and it is too late to have prevented it by earlier vigilance.
Matthew 13:24
“The kingdom of heaven - God’s method of managing the affairs of the world, and the concerns of his Church. Is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field - In general, the world may be termed the field of God; and in particular, those who profess to believe in God through Christ are his field or farm; among whom God sows nothing but the pure unadulterated word of his truth.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:24
“Another parable put he forth unto them, saying,.... Somewhat like the former, but with a different view: for whereas the design of the former was to show the different sorts of hearers that attend upon the ministry of the word, three parts in four being bad; this is to show the difference of members in churches, some being comparable to good seed, and others to tares.”
Matthew 13:24
“The parable of the wheat and tares, which occupies the chief part of these verses, is one of peculiar importance in the present day. It is eminently calculated to correct the extravagant expectations in which many Christians indulge as to the effect of missions abroad, and of preaching the Gospel at home. May we give it the attention which it deserves! In the first place, this parable teaches us that good and evil will always be found together in the professing church, until the end of the world.”
J.C. Ryle· Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: Matthew (1856)Reformed Evangelical
Matthew 13:25
“But while men slept - When the professors were lukewarm, and the pastors indolent, his enemy came and sowed tares, ζιζανια degenerate, or bastard wheat. The righteous and the wicked are often mingled in the visible Church. Every Christian society, how pure soever its principles may be, has its bastard wheat - those who bear a resemblance to the good, but whose hearts are not right with God.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:25
“The Devil is called a man that is an enemy because he has ceased to be God; and in the ninth Psalm it is written of him, Up, Lord, and let not man have the upper hand. (ver. 19) Wherefore let not him sleep that is set over the Church, lest through his carelessness the enemy should sow therein tares, that is, the dogmas of the heretics.”
Jerome· written before 420· Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Matthew 13:26
“When the blade was sprung up - then appeared the tares also - Satan has a shoot of iniquity for every shoot of grace; and, when God revives his work, Satan revives his also. No marvel, therefore, if we find scandals arising suddenly to discredit a work of grace, where God has begun to pour out his Spirit.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:26
“When the blade was sprung up, then appeared the darnel - It was not discerned before: it seldom appears, as soon as the good seed is sown: all at first appears to be peace, and love, and joy.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
2. (vv. 27-30)
the servants of the householder: ask the natural question, from whence then hath it tares, and the answer, an enemy hath done this, refuses to blame the sower or the seed. Let both grow together until the harvest is the parable's hardest instruction, forbidding the servants' own proposed remedy, lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them; the bench reads this as governing the church's patience with mixed profession in the present age, the final separation reserved for harvest and for reapers who will not mistake one plant for the other.
Matthew 13:27
“So the servants of the householder came--that is, Christ's ministers. and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?--This well expresses the surprise, disappointment, and anxiety of Christ's faithful servants and people at the discovery of "false brethren" among the members of the Church.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:27
Didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? Whence then hath it darnel? - Not from the parent of good. Even the heathen could say, "No evil can from thee proceed: 'Tis only suffer'd, not decreed: As darkness is not from the sun, Nor mount the shades, till he is gone."
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Matthew 13:27
“So the servants of the householder came,.... Christ is the "householder"; the house of which he is master is the church, called the household of God, the household of faith, the family in heaven, and in earth; in which house he bears and sustains many relations, as those of a son, a priest, a master, or governor.”
Matthew 13:28
“An enemy hath done this - It is the interest of Satan to introduce hypocrites and wicked persons into religious societies, in order to discredit the work of God, and to favor his own designs. Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? - A zeal which is rash and precipitate is as much to be feared as the total lack of strict discipline.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
3 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:28
“He said unto them, an enemy has done this,.... This is the answer of the householder to the question of his servants. In the Greek text it is, "an enemy man"; and is so rendered in the several versions; meaning, not that the enemy was a man; for he was the devil, as in Mat 13:39 but it is an Hebraism; such as in Est 7:6, איש צר ואויב, "the man adversary and enemy" is this wicked Haman; and signifies a certain enemy, and one indeed that is an implacable enemy to man.”
Matthew 13:28
“Therefore, as I have said above, we must apply our faith to what has been explained by the Lord. And those things which have been left unspoken and neglected by our understanding must be briefly touched upon. Understand that the men who are asleep are the leaders of the Churches. Do not welcome servants of the household of the father except for the angels, who daily see the Father's face (Matt. XVIII). But the devil is called the enemy of man because he stopped being God.”
Jerome· written before 420· Commentary on Matthewpatristic
Matthew 13:28
“Darnel, in the Church, is properly outside Christians, such as have the form of godliness, without the power. Open sinners, such as have neither the form nor the power, are not so properly darnel, as thistles and brambles: these ought to be rooted up without delay, and not suffered in the Christian community.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Matthew 13:29
“But what is said, 'Lest while you gather up the tares, you root up also the wheat together with them,' gives place to repentance, and we are warned not to cut off our brother immediately, because it may happen that he who is corrupt in his understanding today, may tomorrow begin to be sound and to defend the truth.”
Jerome· written before 420· Commentary on Matthewpatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:29
“But he said, Nay - God judges quite otherwise than men of this mixture of good and evil in the world; he knows the good which he intends to produce from it, and how far his patience towards the wicked should extend, in order to their conversion, or the farther sanctification of the righteous.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Matthew 13:29
“It will be observed that the tares are burned before the wheat is housed; in the exposition of the parable (Mt 13:41, 43) the same order is observed: and the same in Mt 25:46 --as if, in some literal sense, "with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked" (Ps 91:8).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Matthew 13:30
“Let both grow together until the harvest,.... By "the harvest", is meant "the end of the world", Mat 13:39 either of the Jewish world, the dissolution of their church and state, which was near; or of a man's life, which is the end of the world to him; or rather of this present world, the system of the universe, of the material world, as to its present form and use, and of the inhabitants of it, and of time in it.”
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:30
In gathering in the wheat, good angels will be employed—"the angels are the reapers." This casts special scorn upon the great evil angel. He sows the tares and tries to destroy the harvest and, therefore, the good angels are brought in to celebrate his defeat and to rejoice together with their Lord in the success of the Divine Husbandry. Satan will make a poor profit out of his meddling—he shall be defeated in all his efforts and so the threat shall be fulfilled, "Upon your belly shall you go, and dust shall you eat."
Charles Spurgeon· written before 1892· The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3393: “Wheat in the Barn” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition)Particular Baptist
Matthew 13:30
“Let both grow together - Though every minister of God should separate from the Church of Christ every incorrigible sinner, yet he should proceed no farther: the man is not to be persecuted in his body or goods, because he is not sound in the faith - God tolerates him; so should men. False doctrines are against God - he alone is the judge and punisher of them - man has no right to interfere in this matter.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
C. Mustard Seed and Hidden Leaven
1. (vv. 31-32)
grain of mustard seed: The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed marks the fourth time in this chapter alone that Matthew's own signature phrase governs a parable, a term he uses thirty-two times against a mere handful of instances of kingdom of God. The seed's small beginning against its eventual size, the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches, pictures an unimpressive start yielding a shelter large enough for outsiders, a reading the bench connects to Daniel 4:12's tree image of a kingdom sheltering many nations.
Matthew 13:31
“See also Mar 4:30-32. The kingdom of heavens See the notes at Mat 3:2. It means here either piety in a renewed heart or the church. In either case the commencement is small. In the heart it is at first feeble, easily injured, and much exposed. In the church there were few at first, ignorant, unknown, and unhonored; yet soon it was to spread through the world. Grain of mustard-seed - The plant here described was very different from that which is known among us. It was several years before it bore fruit and became properly a tree.”
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:31
“He proposed to them another parable - The former parables relate chiefly to unfruitful hearers; these that follow, to those who bear good fruit. The kingdom of heaven - Both the Gospel dispensation, and the inward kingdom.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Matthew 13:32
“Which indeed is the least of all seeds - That is, of all those seeds which produce plants, whose stems and branches, according to the saying of the botanists, are apt δενδριζειν, arborescere, to grow into a ligneous or woody substance. Becometh a tree - That is, it is not only the largest of plants which are produced from such small seeds, but partakes, in its substance, the close woody texture, especially in warm climates, where we are informed it grows to an almost incredible size. The Jerusalem Talmud, tract Peah. fol.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:32
“Which indeed is the least of all seeds,.... So mustard with the Jews (u), is called מין זרעים, "a kind of seeds"; and being very small, hence כחרדל, "as a grain of mustard", is often used, proverbially (w), for the least thing, as it is by Christ, Mat 17:20. Not but there are seeds lesser than this; but the meaning is, that this is one of the least of all seeds; or was the least of seeds, which were commonly known in Judea; or the very least which grew to the size this sometimes did, and as here related.”
2. (v. 33)
hid in three measures of meal: Leaven which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal pictures a working power out of proportion to its visible quantity, three measures being roughly enough to feed a hundred people, the same amount Sarah used for her guests in Genesis 18:6. The bench notes leaven elsewhere in Scripture usually pictures corrupting influence, as in 16:6's warning against the leaven of the Pharisees, so some read this parable as picturing corruption spreading through the visible kingdom rather than pure growth; others read the working itself, hidden and pervasive until the whole is affected, as the plain point regardless of leaven's usual moral coloring elsewhere.
Matthew 13:33
“Three measures - This was the quantity which they usually baked at once: till the whole was leavened - Thus will the Gospel leaven the world and grace the Christian.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:33
“The kingdom of heaven - The meaning here is the same as in the last parable; perhaps, however, intending to denote more properly the secret and hidden nature of piety in the soul. The other parable declared the “fact” that the gospel would greatly spread, and that piety in the heart would greatly increase. This states the “way” or “mode” in which it would be done.”
3. (vv. 34-35)
without a parable spake he not: unto them states Matthew's own summary of the method, and that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet quotes Psalm 78:2, a psalm of Asaph rather than a writing prophet strictly speaking, attributed here simply to the prophet as inspired utterance. Things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world names the kingdom's mysteries as content withheld until this hour, not because God changed his mind but because the appointed time for their unveiling had finally come in the person now speaking them.
Matthew 13:34
“Yet He spoke not in parables to the disciples, but to the multitude; and even to this day the multitude hears in parables; and therefore it is said, And without a parable spake he not unto them. This passage is taken from the seventy-seventh Psalm. I have seen copies which read, 'by Esaias the Prophet,' instead of what we have adopted, and what the common text has by the Prophet. But because the text was not found in Isaiah, his name was, I suppose, therefore erased by such as had observed that.”
Jerome· written before 420· Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:34
“There are eight parables recorded in this chapter, which are designed to represent the kingdom of heaven, the method of planting the gospel kingdom in the world, and of its growth and success. The great truths and laws of that kingdom are in other scriptures laid down plainly, and without parables: but some circumstances of its beginning and progress are here laid open in parables.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Matthew 13:35
“By the prophet - As the quotation is taken from Psa 78:2, which is attributed to Asaph, he must be the prophet who is meant in the text; and, indeed, he is expressly called a prophet, 1Ch 25:2. Several MSS. have Ησαιου, Isaiah; but this is a manifest error. Jerome supposes that Asaph was first in the text, and that some ignorant transcriber, not knowing who this Asaph was, inserted the word Isaiah; and thus, by attempting to remove an imaginary error, made a real one.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Cross references
Matthew 13:35
- QuotingPsalms 78:2“I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden from the beginning,”
'I will open my mouth in parables', fulfillment formula
ConnectionsPsalms 78:2
D. The Tares Explained: the Harvest at the End
1. (vv. 36-37)
Declare unto us the parable: of the tares of the field comes once Jesus has sent the multitude away and gone into the house, a private audience the crowd never receives. He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man begins the interpretation with the sower's identity settled first, the same title used at 8:20 and now bearing the full weight of the parable's authority.
Matthew 13:36
“The exposition Christ gave of the parable, in answer to their request; so ready is Christ to answer such desires of his disciples. Now the drift of the parable is, to represent to us the present and future state of the kingdom of heaven, the gospel church: Christ's care of it, the devil's enmity against it, the mixture that there is in it of good and bad in the other world.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Matthew 13:37
“Note, The number of fruitless hearers is very great, even of those who heard Christ himself. Who has believed our report? It is a melancholy prospect which this parable gives us of the congregations of those who hear the gospel preached, that scarcely one in four brings forth fruit to perfection.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
2. (vv. 38-39)
the good seed are the children of the kingdom: The field is the world sets the parable's scope wider than the visible church, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom stands opposite the tares, the children of the wicked one, planted by an enemy the text names plainly, the enemy that sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the world and the reapers are the angels fixes the timing of the separation to come, not to the church's own present discipline, which chapter 18 will address on its own separate terms.
Matthew 13:38
“The tares are the children of the wicked one--As this sowing could only be "while men slept," no blame seems intended, and certainly none is charged upon "the servants"; it is probably just the dress of the parable.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Matthew 13:39
“The enemy, after sowing his "tares," "went his way"--his dark work soon done, but taking time to develop its true character. The harvest is the end of the world--the period of Christ's second coming, and of the judicial separation of the righteous and the wicked. Till then, no attempt is to be made to effect such separation.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:39
“By the harvest is denoted the day of judgment, in which the good are to be separated from the evil; which will be done by the ministry of Angels, as it is said below, that the Son of Man shall come to judgment with His Angels. As then the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his Angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all offences, and them which do iniquity.”
Remigius of Rheims· written before 533· Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
3. (vv. 40-42)
gathered and burned in the fire: As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire so shall it be in the end of this world states the pattern once, then applies it, the Son of man shall send forth his angels to gather out all things that offend and them which do iniquity. A furnace of fire and wailing and gnashing of teeth is the second sounding of the refrain first heard at 8:12, always on Jesus' own lips and always describing the same final exclusion rather than a threat softened for a parable's sake.
Matthew 13:40
“As therefore the tares are gathered,.... As it is represented in the parable, that in the time of harvest, the tares shall be gathered out from the wheat first; and being bound in bundles, shall burnt in the fire, prepared for that purpose, so shall it be in the end of this world; hypocritical and heretical men, and all formal professors, shall be gathered out from among the saints, and the several churches, among whom they have been; and shall be together cast into everlasting burnings, prepared for the devil and his angels, whose children they are.”
Matthew 13:41
“They usurped their place and name and outward privileges; but "the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners [abide] in the congregation of the righteous" (Ps 1:5). all things that offend--all those who have proved a stumbling-block to others and them which do iniquity--The former class, as the worst, are mentioned first.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:41
“They shall gather all things that offend - Whatever had hindered or grieved the children of God; whatever things or persons had hindered the good seed which Christ had sown from taking root or bearing fruit. The Greek word is, All scandals.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Matthew 13:42
“In these words is shown the reality of the resurrection of the body; and further, the twofold pains of hell, extreme heat, and extreme cold.”
Remigius of Rheims· written before 533· Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:42
“He affirms, lastly, that "the very hairs of our head are all numbered," and in the affirmation He of course includes the promise of their safety; for if they were to be lost, where would be the use of having taken such a numerical care of them? Surely the only use lies (in this truth): "That of all which the Father hath given to me, I should lose none," -not even a hair, as also not an eye nor a tooth.”
Tertullian· written before 220· On the Resurrection of the Fleshpatristic
4. (v. 43)
shine forth as the sun: Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father answers Daniel 12:3's promise that the wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, the tares' burning matched by the wheat's brightness in the same harvest scene. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear repeats the sower parable's own closing call, framing the whole run of parables from verse 3 to here as one extended answer to those willing to ask what the kingdom's mysteries mean.
Matthew 13:43
“The subject of this last pair, as of the two former, is the same, but also under a slight diversity of aspect: namely-- THE PRICELESS VALUE OF THE BLESSINGS OF THE KINGDOM. And while the one parable represents the Kingdom as "found without seeking," the other holds forth the Kingdom as "sought and found." The Hidden Treasure (Mt 13:44).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
E. Treasure, Pearl, and Dragnet
1. (v. 44)
treasure hid in a field: pictures a common ancient practice, burying valuables for safekeeping in unsettled times, so that a field's true worth could be hidden from anyone but the man who found it. The bench notes the finder sells all that he hath for joy, not grudging sacrifice, and reads the parable as picturing the kingdom's worth once truly seen, whatever it costs to obtain becomes, from the far side of the discovery, no sacrifice at all.
Matthew 13:44
“The kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field - Θησαυρω κεκρυμμενω, to a hidden treasure. We are not to imagine that the treasure here mentioned, and to which the Gospel salvation is likened, means a pot or chest of money hidden in the field, but rather a gold or silver mine, which he who found out could not get at, or work, without turning up the field, and for this purpose he bought it.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:44
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field--no uncommon thing in unsettled and half-civilized countries, even now as well as in ancient times, when there was no other way of securing it from the rapacity of neighbors or marauders.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Matthew 13:44
“The parables of the “treasure hidden in a field” and the “merchant man seeking goodly pearls,” appear intended to convey one the same lesson. They vary, no doubt, in one striking particular: the “treasure” was found of one who does not seem to have sought it; the “pearl” was found of one who was actually seeking pearls. But the conduct of the finders, in both cases, was precisely alike: both “sold all” to make the thing found their own property; and it is exactly at this point that the instruction of both parables agrees.”
J.C. Ryle· Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: Matthew (1856)Reformed Evangelical
2. (vv. 45-46)
seeking goodly pearls: A merchant man, seeking goodly pearls differs from the treasure parable in one telling detail, a man actively searching rather than one who stumbles upon a find, and having found one pearl of great price he sold all that he had and bought it. The bench reads the pair together as covering both approaches to the kingdom, the one who finds it without looking and the one who has searched every market for it, both paying the identical price of everything they own.
Matthew 13:45
“The kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchantman - The meaning is, that the proper seeking for salvation, or the proper conduct in reference to religion, is like the conduct of a “merchantman.” In his searches he found one pearl of great value, and sold all his possessions to obtain it. So, says the Saviour, people seeking for happiness and finding the gospel - the pearl of great price - should be willing to sacrifice all other things for this. Pearls are precious stones found in the shells of oysters, chiefly in the East Indies.”
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:45
“The kingdom of heaven - That is, one who earnestly seeks for it: in verse 47 it means, the Gospel preached, which is like a net gathering of every kind: just so the Gospel, wherever it is preached, gathers at first both good and bad, who are for a season full of approbation and warm with good desires.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Matthew 13:45
“A MERCHANT endeavors to trade so as to make a profit. Whether he deals in pearls or in grain, he does not hope to obtain riches by labor. He leaves that to those who eat their bread in the sweat of their face. He tries to get his by the sweat of his brain. He is dependent not so much upon labor as upon knowledge, upon skill, upon the advantage which superior acquaintance with the article which he deals in gives him. Now, this merchant is, at the very commencement, in some measure, a picture of the seeker after Christ.”
Matthew 13:46
“But in both cases the surpassing value of the treasure is alike recognized, and in both all is parted with for it. The Good and Bad Fish (Mt 13:47-50). The object of this brief parable is the same as that of the Tares and Wheat.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
3. (vv. 47-48)
cast into the sea: A net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind pictures the dragnet fishing common on Galilee, a net weighted to sweep the lake bottom and haul in whatever it meets, useless and edible fish alike. They drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away names a sorting that happens only once the catch is landed, not while the net is still being drawn.
Matthew 13:47
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind--The word here rendered "net" signifies a large drag-net, which draws everything after it, suffering nothing to escape, as distinguished from a casting-net (Mr 1:16, 18). The far-reaching efficacy of the Gospel is thus denoted.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:47
“In fulfilment of that prophecy of Hieremias, who said, I will send unto you many fishers, (Jer. 6:16.) when Peter and Andrew, James and John, heard the words, Follow me, I will make you fishers of men, they put together a net for themselves formed of the Old and New Testaments, and cast it into the sea of this world, and that remains spread until this day, taking up out of the salt and bitter and whirlpools whatever falls into it, that is good men and bad; and this is that He adds, And gathered of every kind.”
Jerome· written before 420· Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Matthew 13:47
“The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net ... - This parable does not differ in meaning from that of the tares. The gospel is compared to a net dragging along on the bottom of a lake, and collecting all - good and bad. The gospel may be expected to do the same; but in the end of the world, when the net “is drawn in,” the bad will be separated from the good; the one will be cast away, and the other saved.”
Matthew 13:48
“For when the end of the world shall be come, then shall be shown the true test of separating the fishes, and as in a sheltered harbour the good shall be sent into the vessels of heavenly abodes, but the flame of hell shall seize the wicked to be dried up and withered.”
Jerome· written before 420· Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
4. (vv. 49-50)
sever the wicked from among the just: So shall it be at the end of the world names the net parable's meaning in nearly the same words used for the tares, the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just. The furnace of fire and the wailing and gnashing of teeth repeat a third time in this single chapter, and the bench reads the triple repetition, tares, net, and this summary, as Matthew's own emphasis, the mixed condition of the visible kingdom in the present age is real and its final sorting is certain.
Matthew 13:49
“The calling that is through Christ is to be extended throughout the whole world. The net of gospel preaching seeks to gather together people out of every nation. People who are expert in catching fish and are mariners by trade let down their net making no discrimination, but whatever has been caught up in the meshes, wholly and entirely, is hauled by them to shore. So likewise the power of preaching and the marvelous and intricate teaching of the sacred doctrines, which the apostles, as good fishermen, wove together, draw people from every nation and gather them together for God.”
Cyril of Alexandria· written before 444· FRAGMENT 171patristic
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:49
“Both are important truths--that the Gospel draws within its pale, and into the communion of the visible Church, multitudes who are Christians only in name; and that the injury thus done to the Church on earth is to be traced to the wicked one.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Matthew 13:50
“And those who attended to the net that was cast into the sea are Jesus Christ, the master of the net, and "the angels who came and ministered to him." It is not until the net is filled full that they will draw it up from the sea and carry it to the shore beyond the sea—namely, to things beyond this life—but not until the "fullness of the Gentiles" has been drawn into it. But when that fullness has come, then they draw it up from things here below and carry it to what is figuratively called the shore.”
Origen of Alexandria· written before 253· COMMENTARY ON MATTHEW 10.12patristic
5. (vv. 51-52)
Have ye understood: all these things draws the disciples' confident yea, Lord, and the parable that follows rewards that understanding with a role, every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder. Things new and old names the trained disciple's task plainly, bringing forward both the old covenant's Scriptures and the new teaching just given, neither discarding the old for the new nor confining the new within the old's categories alone.
Matthew 13:51
“Jesus saith unto them,.... This is left out in the Vulgate Latin, and Ethiopic versions, and in Munster's Hebrew Gospel, and in some Greek exemplars; though it is necessary to the connection and sense of the words: have ye understood all these things?”
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:51
THIS is a question which might often be asked of us when we have been reading the Scriptures, when we have been attending upon the public means of Grace, or when we have been partaking of the Lord's Supper—"Have you understood all these things?" It were well for someone to run up to us, as Philip did to the eunuch, who on his return from Jerusalem was reading in his chariot, and say to us as Philip did to him, "Do you understand what you are reading?"
Charles Spurgeon· written before 1892· The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3305: “A Clear Understanding” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition)Particular Baptist
Matthew 13:51
“Jesus saith unto them--that is, to the Twelve. He had spoken the first four in the hearing of the mixed multitude: the last three He reserved till, on the dismissal of the mixed audience, He and the Twelve were alone (Mt 13:36, &c.).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Matthew 13:52
“Every scribe - Minister of Christ: who is instructed - taught of God; in the kingdom of heaven - in the mysteries of the Gospel of Christ: out of his treasury - his granary or store-house; things new and old - a Jewish phrase for great plenty. A small degree of knowledge is not sufficient for a preacher of the Gospel. The sacred writings should be his treasure, and he should properly understand them.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:52
“Every scribe instructed unto the kingdom of heaven - That is, every duly prepared preacher of the Gospel has a treasure of Divine knowledge, out of which he is able to bring forth all sorts of instructions. The word treasure signifies any collection of things whatsoever, and the places where such collections are kept.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
F. No Honor in His Own Country
1. (v. 53)
when Jesus had finished these parables: closes the third of the five great discourses with the same sealing formula that marks 7:28, 11:1, 19:1, and 26:1, Matthew's own structural signal that a block of teaching has ended and narrative resumes. The bench reads the five discourses as an old and widely held pattern in the church's memory of the Gospel, five blocks answering the five books of Moses, worth naming as tradition though Matthew nowhere states the parallel outright.
Matthew 13:53
“And it came to pass that, when Jesus had finished these parables,.... Which he spoke both to the multitude from the ship, and to his disciples in the house, he departed thence; from the house in which he was, and the city of Capernaum, where he had some time been.”
1 more voice on this verse
Matthew 13:53
“Note, Sometimes there is most of the power of religion where there is least of the pomp of it: the poor receive the gospel. When Christ went to the sea-side, multitudes were presently gathered together to him. Where the king is, there is the court; where Christ is, there is the church, though it be by the sea-side.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
2. (vv. 54-56)
his own country: Come into his own country brings Jesus back to Nazareth, and the astonishment of his own townsmen, whence hath this man this wisdom, betrays the real trouble: they know his trade and his family too well to accept the source of his teaching. Is not this the carpenter's son names Joseph's trade, tekton, a builder in wood or stone rather than merely a woodworker, and the naming of Mary and four brothers by name, James, Joses, Simon, and Judas, plus unnamed sisters, gives the fullest family list the Gospels record.
Matthew 13:54
“As the case stood, however, it was actually the ordinary condition of His terrene flesh which made all things else about Him wonderful, as when they said, "Whence hath this man this wisdom and these mighty works? " Thus spake even they who despised His outward form.”
Tertullian· written before 220· On the Flesh of Christpatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:54
“And when he was come into his own country - Probably Nazareth, where his parents lived, and where he had continued till his thirtieth year, though it appears he had a lodging in Peter’s house at Capernaum. They were astonished - It appears, hence, that our blessed Lord had lived in obscurity all the time above specified; for his countrymen appear not to have heard his doctrines, nor seen his miracles, until now.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Matthew 13:54
“And when he was come into his own country--that is, Nazareth; as is plain from Mr 6:1. See on Joh 4:43, where also the same phrase occurs. This, according to the majority of Harmonists, was the second of two visits which our Lord paid to Nazareth during His public ministry; but in our view it was His first and only visit to it.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Matthew 13:55
“The carpenter's son - The Greek, word means, one that works either in wood, iron, or stone. His brethren -- our kinsmen. They were the sons of Mary, sister to the virgin, and wife of Cleophas or Alpheus.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:55
“Is not this the carpenter’s son? - Mark says, “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary?” Both these expressions would probably be used in the course of the conversation, and Matthew has recorded one and Mark the other. The expression recorded by Mark is a strong, perhaps decisive proof that he had himself worked at the business until he was 30 years of age. The people in the neighborhood would understand well the nature of his early employments. It is therefore almost certain that this had been his manner of life. A useful employment is always honorable.”
Matthew 13:55
“Is not this the carpenter's son?.... Meaning Joseph, who was by trade a carpenter, and whose son Jesus was supposed to be; and who very probably was now dead, which may be the reason he is not mentioned by name. The Greek word here used, signifies any mechanic, or artificer. The Syriac expresses it by a word, which signifies both a carpenter and a blacksmith; and Munster's Hebrew Gospel renders it, בן נפחא, "the blacksmith's son".”
Matthew 13:56
“This question also is one of considerable difficulty, and not without importance; since the James who occupies so prominent a place in the Church of Jerusalem, in the latter part of the Acts, was apparently the apostle, but is by many regarded as "the Lord's brother," while others think their identity best suits all the statements.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
3. (vv. 57-58)
A prophet is not without honour: They were offended in him states the town's verdict plainly, and Jesus answers with a proverb, a prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house, familiarity breeding a contempt no stranger would have felt. He did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief closes the chapter on a sobering note the bench reads honestly rather than softening: not that power failed him, but that unbelief itself is the one soil the parable of the sower already named as unfit to receive what is sown, even from the sower's own hometown.
Matthew 13:57
“And they were offended in him - That is, they took offence at his humble birth, and at the indigent circumstances of his family. They were too proud to be taught by one who, in family connections, they took to be their equal or inferior. People always look with envy on those of their own rank who advance pretensions to uncommon wisdom or superior power. A prophet is not without honour ... - This seems to be a proverbial expression. Jesus advances it as a general truth. There might be some exceptions to it, but He was not an exception.”
Matthew 13:58
“And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief - Δυναμεις, miracles. So the word is used, Mat 7:22; Mat 11:20; Act 19:11; 1Co 12:28; Gal 3:5; Heb 2:4. The Septuagint translates נפלאות אל niphleoth el, the miraculous works of God, by δυναμιν κυριε. Unbelief and contempt drive Christ out of the heart, as they did out of his own country. Faith seems to put the almighty power of God into the hands of men; whereas unbelief appears to tie up even the hands of the Almighty.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Matthew 13:58
“He wrought not many mighty works, because of their unbelief - And the reason why many mighty works are not wrought now, is not, that the faith is not everywhere planted; but, that unbelief every where prevails.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Matthew 13:58
“Or we may understand it otherwise, that Jesus is despised in His own house and country, signifies in the Jewish people; and therefore He did among them few miracles, that they might not be altogether without excuse; but among the Gentiles He does daily greater miracles by His Apostles, not so much in healing their bodies, as in saving their souls.”
Jerome· written before 420· Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
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Sources for this chapter
The summary
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.
The exposition
Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Gospels; Carl Friedrich Keil; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin, Commentary on a Harmony of the Evangelists; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament; John Lightfoot, Horae Hebraicae et Talmudicae on Matthew; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.